MMA

EVGENY EROKHIN DEFENDS HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE WITH FIRST ROUND KO OVER RICHARD ODOMS

FIGHT HELD ON JULY 30 AT SMART ARANETA COLISEUM IN MANILA, PHILIPPINES

MANILA, PHILIPPINESS July 31, 2016 World Series of Fighting – Global Championship (WSOF-GC) brought the world to Philippines and the fans were thrilled with two highlight-reel knockouts and three superb submissions.

The main event ended with a thunderous knockout, as WSOF-GC World Heavyweight Champion, Russia’s Evgeny Erokhin (15-4) sent United States’ Richard Odoms (11-3) to the canvas just 1:11 into the first round. The victory marks Erokhin’s first title defense and an unprecedented 10th straight knockout victory.

In the co-main event, rising Philippines’ sensation Mario Sismundo (3-2) was derailed by China’s Keremuaili Maimaitituoheti (6-3). It was an intense see-saw battle, with Maimai capturing and keeping the upper hand in the second round with a rear-naked choke.

Other main card action saw the opening round of the WSOF-GC Flyweight Tournament. Lawrence DiGiulio (18-8-1) defeated Marcel Adur (11-5) via split decision. The other contest saw Japan’s Yusaku Nakamura (13-4-1) defeat Australia’s Tim Moore (10-6) via unanimous decision. This sets up a rematch of the class battle that DiGiulio had against Nakamura in Japan earlier this year. This rematch will be a 5-round affair for the inaugural WSOF-GC World Flyweight Championship, and is scheduled for later this year in Japan.

The main card started with a title fight, featuring the featherweight champion of WSOF-GC’s affiliate, Underground Battle MMA (UGB-MMA). “The Wolverine” Ahmed Mujtaba (7-0) successfully defended his title by making quick work of Philippines’ Neil Larano (2-1) with a triangle choke just 1:08 into the first round.

The night’s swing bout showcased a spirited contest between Brazil’s Nayara Hemily (4-3) against Philippines’ Jenelyn Olsim (2-1). Nayara was able to finish the fight in the second round with a rear-naked choke.

The fight that stole the show though, was the exciting, hard-hitting match featuring an international rivalry. Pakistan’s Uloomi Karim (6-3) handed India’s Yadwinder Singh (5-1) his first pro loss by unanimous decision. In a very emotional, and well-deserved sign of respect for one another’s countries, the two warriors posed together with their country flags to show a unity between the two nations. It was an emotional moment and both fighters represented their countries with honor and pride. It was truly “Fight of the Night” in more ways than one.

I READ somewhere that the DPWH is allocating mega billions for infrastructure projects designed to ease the traffic problem besetting much of urban Philippines. I can imagine how a big chunk of that moolah will be devoted to infra projects within Metro Manila - more street widenings, more flyovers, maybe more pedestrian overpasses and underpasses as well as flood control.

As I flew out of Manila yesterday morning I noticed that it happened to be a clear day over most of the NCR, and what big clouds there were weren’t big enough to cover everything. So our PAL Airbus A330 flew around the giant clouds and in between them you could catch a glimpse of considerable sections of Metro Manila. My younger brother seated behind me pointed out UP Diliman - and I marveled at the way the campus was green as seen from the air and at how it was laid out.